Crime detection at ‘tipping point’ after cuts, says chief constable

THE police are becoming “ineffective” at core duties such as investigating crime and attending emergencies because of budget cuts, one of the country’s most senior officers has said.

Dave Thompson, chief constable of West Midlands Police, said policing had reached a “tipping point” beyond which officers would be able to “process the work” but not detect crime.

In what could be a cry for help to Theresa May, he said public confidence in the police in such basic duties as answering calls and bringing offenders to justice were “being pushed beyond sustainability”.

Mr Thompson, the National Police Chiefs’ Council lead for finance and resources, issued a statement on the day that MPS took evidence on police budgets from senior officers, including Sir Tom Winsor, HM Chief Inspector of Constabulary.

Michael Barton, Durham’s chief constable, told the Public Accounts Committee: “The public sector needed an incentive to change and improve.

“I think the budget cuts we faced in 2010 and 2011 were helpful to the organisation ... because we became much more private-sector motivated with a public-sector heart. The problem has been ... it’s that length of time.

“When that kicked in, we were told we could cut hard, cut deep, cut once and austerity would end in 2015 and that has not been the case and that has been so traumatic.”

His comments are likely to alarm Downing Street and the Home Office.

Mr Thompson said that while the Home Office has invested in countering terrorism and organised crime, “the gains we’ve made have come at a cost to perhaps the most important parts of policing for the public”.

He went on: “Crime is rising and so is the demand on our service. The calls do not get answered as quickly as they did. Officers are not as fast at responding to emergencies and more crimes are dealt with on the phone.

“Fewer high-volume crimes like thefts are investigated and as a result fewer offenders brought to justice. The visibility and proactivity of neighbourhood policing is much reduced.

‘The gains we’ve made have come at a cost to perhaps the most important parts of policing for the public’

Bluntly, our ability to manage the big threats and protect the vulnerable yet still be the traditional police the public want and need is becoming ever harder. We are in danger of pursuing efficiency to the point of ineffectiveness – where we can process the work but we’re not detecting crime as we should be and not meeting public expectations.”

♦ Nick Apter, the chairman of the Police Federation, expressed concern at remarks made by Diane Abbott, the shadow home secretary, in which she suggested police officers use disproportionate force against young black men. He wrote to her in a private letter: “I would expect someone holding such a responsible office to refrain from speculative comments that damage police-community relations.”